A clockwork radio is a radio (usually an emergency radio) that is powered by clockwork wind-up mechanism driving an internal generator, rather than batteries, solar cells, thermoelectrics or electricity from the electrical grid. Like other self-powered equipment, it is intended for camping, emergencies and for use in areas of the world where there is no electrical grid and replacement batteries are hard to obtain, such as in developing countries or remote settlements in developed countries. It is also useful when it will not be used on a regular basis, such as at a vacation house or cabin. Clockwork radios sometimes incorporate a flashlight or other useful device. Some models have a multiple power sources: wind-up, solar, conventional batteries, A/C, etc. An emergency radio is, broadly speaking, a radio receiver designed to remain functional in cases of power outage or isolation from contact with civilization. ... Gear with escapment mechanism For other uses, see Clockwork (disambiguation). ... An electrical generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy, generally using electromagnetic induction. ... Four double-A batteries In science and technology, a battery is a device that stores energy and makes it available in an electrical form. ... A solar cell, made from a monocrystalline silicon wafer A solar cell or photovoltaic cell is a device that converts light energy into electrical energy. ... Thermoelectricity is the conversion from heat differentials to electricity or vice versa. ... Lightning strikes during a night-time thunderstorm. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Car camping is camping in a tent, but nearby the car for easier access and for supply storage. ... A high power torch Green flashlight Flashlight is also the NATO designation for the Yakovlev Yak-25 Soviet military jet. ...

A Baygen clockwork radio with crank in winding position

The modern clockwork radio is a patented design by Trevor Baylis through a company called Baygen. The key to its design is the use of a constant velocity spring to store the potential energy. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2560 × 1920 pixel, file size: 1,003 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A BayGen Clockwork Radio. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2560 × 1920 pixel, file size: 1,003 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) A BayGen Clockwork Radio. ... A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a patentee (the inventor or assignee) for a fixed period of time in exchange for the regulated, public disclosure of certain details of a device, method, process or composition of matter (substance) (known as an invention) which... Trevor G. Baylis (born May 13, 1937 in Kilburn, London, England) is a British inventor. ... Baygen is a South African company whose first product is a transistor radio powered with a clockwork mechanism rather than with batteries. ... Look up spring in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Potential energy is the energy that is by virtue of the relative positions (configurations) of the objects within a physical system. ...

Antecedents

Early antecedents of the clockwork radio would include:

• Potter's wheel - hand or foot operated.
• Singer sewing machine - pedal operated, leaving hands free.
• Royal Flying Doctor pedal powered two-way radio developed in 1920s, but these are too heavy to be portable.
• School of the Air - students in remote locations use RFDS radio to talk to teachers.

Classic potters kick-wheel at Erfurt, Germany The potters wheel, also known as the potters lathe, is a machine used in the shaping of round ceramic wares. ... Singer Corporation is a sewing machine company located in the United States of America. ... A modern machine (Singer Symphonie 300) A sewing machine is a mechanical (or electromechanical) device that joins fabric using thread. ... The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (RFDS, informally known as The Flying Doctors) is an air ambulance service for those living in the remote inland areas of Australia. ... The 1920s is a decade sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... The School of the Air is a generic term for correspondence schools catering for the primary and early secondary education of children in remote Australia. ... The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (RFDS, informally known as The Flying Doctors) is an air ambulance service for those living in the remote inland areas of Australia. ...

See also

• Alternative technology
• Appropriate technology
• Batteryless radio
• Dynamo
• Electrical generator
• Self-powered equipment

Alternative technology is a term sometimes used by environmental advocates to refer to technologies which are more environmentally friendly than the functionally equivalent technologies dominant in current practice. ... Appropriate technology is the term used to describe objects which meet the needs of the local people and the environment in which they live. ... A Baygen clockwork radio with crank in winding position Radio receivers were originally operated by battery. ... Dynamo, or Dinamo, may refer to: Dynamo, an electrical generator Dynamo (sports society) of the Soviet Union Operation Dynamo, the 1940 mass evacuation at Dunkirk Dynamo, the rock band based in Belfast Dynamo theory, a theory relating to magnetic fields of celestial bodies Dynamo Open Air, annual heavy metal music... An electrical generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy, generally using electromagnetic induction. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

External link

• Baygen Radio